Q: Dear Doc, please my baby is 6 weeks old but stretches his body so much and groans while he is stretching. It is so bad that he is not able to sleep well since he does it while sleeping. We saw a pediatrician and she said it is normal but I am still worried because the stretching and groaning is intense now. Please help.

A: The stomach aches that babies have (colic) can be very distressing for a parent to watch but perhaps understanding what it is about may be helpful. Colics usually start occurring in some children between 3 to 6 weeks of age and disappear between the 3rd to 4th month of life, without any treatment. So, your baby fits right into this age group. Unfortunately, we still do not really know what causes these colics and why some babies suffer from it while others do not. However, it has been found to occur more in first born babies (whether boy or girl), formula-fed babies and can also be associated with the diet of a breastfeeding mum.

Some modifications may help reduce their severity:

• Be sure to burp baby after each feed
• Hold baby and gently rock her after a feed
• Hold your baby upright during her feed
• Check your diet: reduce caffeine-containing foods and sometimes, it may be the dairy in your diet that you baby is reacting to. Taking dairy off your diet for a week or two may lead to improvement in symptoms.

Remember to see your doctor where in doubt, especially if this continues past the time noted above.

Just a note about gripe water which a lot of people want to give their babies when they have this condition….honestly, the benefits are more in our imagination than in actual fact 😀

So, with or without gripe water, this colic shall pass J

Have a great weekend y’all 😀